Wessels Family Farm Market annexes into DeKalb city

DeKALB – A family-owned DeKalb farmer’s market that sells freshly picked produce, pumpkins, Christmas trees and more was recently annexed into the city, a move the Wessels family said could mean great things for the future.

Wessels Family Farm Market, now rezoned and annexed into the city, is in need of work to improve the site, 2023 Sycamore Road at the corner of Sycamore Road and Greenwood Acres Drive, according to city documents.

Owner Rob Wessels said that having the city’s support means a great deal to him. A recent DeKalb City Council vote approved the annexation.

“We’re able to continue doing what we’ve been doing – selling produce,” Wessels said.

Wessels said the family farm market may be able to expand its offerings because of rezoning and annexation into the city as well.

“I could envision maybe having a little coffee bar or maybe having a slushee place, but that’s down the road,” Wessels said. “We need to do a lot of work before we can think of doing something like that.”

“People like buying local. People like buying fresh. They like buying things that they know haven’t got preservatives put on. … They know who we are. It all adds up to we have a really good relationship with a lot of community people. The community support is just wonderful.”

—  Rob Wessels

The 6,300-square-foot building was once a restaurant in the 1950s, according to city documents, and later a Harley Davidson dealership until the 1990s. The Wessels family has recently the 0.6-acre site since 2001 to sell seasonal produce. The family bought the property in 2022.

Among the items the family would like to tackle on the site include a firewall that needs to be put up, and a parking area that needs to be blacktopped, Wessels said. The latter is a priority for him.

“When the city walked through with us, there were some improvements they wanted made,” Wessels said.

Work already was done on the building earlier this year, according to the city. New siding, windows and doors were installed.

Wessels said that conducting business with the city has gone smoothly.

“They’re giving us a good timeframe,” Wessels said. “So far, it’s been a good relationship.”

Wessells told city staff the plan is to occupy 2,700-square-feet of the space at the front of the building to include indoor space for employees and customers to go in the colder months. The space also would include a storage area and retail section, according to city documents.

Wessels said he doesn’t anticipate that the annexation and rezoning will greatly change how business fares at the family farm market.

“Being next to the city gives us more long range,” he said. “We’re able to do things farther out that we wouldn’t be able if weren’t next to the city. It’s more looking into the future.”

Wessels said business at the family farm market has been faring well.

“People like buying local,” he said. “People like buying fresh. They like buying things that they know haven’t got preservatives put on. … They know who we are. It all adds up to we have a really good relationship with a lot of community people. The community support is just wonderful.”